RBA frustration

[joejoe]

I have a Fogger, RSST and an ATTY from fasttech however I don't use any of them because I have no idea what kind of wicks or coils to use with them. I've tried using the wicks and wires that come with these RBAs, but I always got a burnt taste, constant hot spots and managed to pop every single coil no matter how I wrapped them. I would love to know which wicks and coils you all prefer and where to buy them. I've become so frustrated and desperate I'm considering buying these: https://www.fasttech.com/products/1475303 but I noticed they only come in 1.8 ohm (worse yet the reviews state these pre-assembled wicks and wires arrive at 2.4 ohm and you can't lower the resistance due to the non-resistance legs).

I use Efest and AW batteries. My juices are mostly 80/20 vg/pg. I will be using these RBAs with a Sigeli #8w, Nimbus clone and a Chi-you clone.

I appreciate your suggestions. Thanks in advance.

 

[Asbestos4004]

YouTube is full of great tutorials. Type in "RSST build" and PRESTO! Same works for Fogger and anything else you have. If you're looking at going sub ohm....Please research battery safety, ohms law, watts law and any other piece of information you can find ECF to help you do it safely. My experience is, you can achieve a great vape at 1.8 ohms. I prefer between 1.2-1.5 ohms. Prebuilt coils from FastTech sound like a bad idea. You'll do better building your own.

 

[Ryedan]

There are two main types of rebuildable attys. RBA's and RDA's. RBA's (rebuildable atomizers) have a tank. RDA's (rebuildable dripping atomizers) do not have a tank.

RBA's are typically setup with silica or stainless steel wicks. Genisis RBAs are usually SS wicked. Many different combinations are possible. Google is your friend here.

RDA's (drippers) are usually setup with cotton or silica wicks. Again, Google is your friend here.

Bottom feeders are a whole other thing and are very nice if that's what you like.

You have a bunch of attys and they each have a best way of setting them up. I'm not going to go into each one because each are different and each need a post to begin to explain their intricacies. I would concentrate on one at a time, research it and learn how it works and how to set it up. Practice makes the learning curve much shorter . Google is your friend here. Pre-made coils will work, but they are not optimal.

You said you have Efest and AW batteries, but not which ones. You need IMR batteries for mechanical mods. If your batts are protected ICR lithium ion they are not safe for mech mods. Unprotected ICR batts are the worst and the ones that blow up.

Mechanical mods require you to do what is necessary to be safe with the batteries and the mod use. If you draw too many amps from the batts they will heat up and become unsafe. If you don't take the batts out soon enough they will be over discharged and will quickly be toast. A good quality charger is recommended.

Regulated mods like the Provari and the Vamo will take care of most of this stuff for you. You still have to have good batts and chargers tough.

 

[Vaslovik]

I have a Fogger, RSST and an ATTY from fasttech however I don't use any of them because I have no idea what kind of wicks or coils to use with them. I've tried using the wicks and wires that come with these RBAs,

I'm not sure what wicks and wires came with your RBA's, but for my part I would never use a wick someone else made, and I'd prefer to choose my own wire. Generally I go with 28 ga. kanthal, 4/3 wrap, .8 ohm, and a 400 mesh wick rolled tight. This serves me very well. I can well understand your frustration, it can be a real pain for some to learn setting up an RBA and getting it right, but once you have it down, trust me, you will be very happy with it. Nothing vapes like a well set up RBA, and getting it right on your own is a really great feeling.

Just take a break, step back and watch this video:

A PBusardo Review - Smoktech RSST Genesis Atomizer - YouTube

PBusardo is something of a vaping institution for me, and I learned a lot from him. You did well to get an RSST, it's a marvelous atty, easy to set up and gives a marvelous vape, once you are past the learning curve, which takes patience and persistence. Popping coils like that might be because you are using a fully charged battery to check for hot spots, with a coil that is too sub-ohm. Are you checking your ohms before you put your atty on the mod? You really need to.

I have found that it's best to use a battery that's been vaped on for a while to check for hot spots and work them out.

How are you dealing with the hot spots? What I've found works well for me is a dental pick, which I use to gently move the coil loops on the wick under power until the hot spots go away. How many wraps are you using and what wire? I find that 28 kanthal wrapped 4/3 consistently gives me between .75 and .85 ohms, with the target being .8 ohm which I can usually hit after working out the hot spots and tweaking the coil's connection on the center post. This is easy to do with the RSST.

You may be frustrated now, but in time I'm quite sure you will get it down and be able to coil your RBA consistently and well. It just takes time and patience. Also, have something else on hand to vape on while you work on it. You WILL GET THERE

BTW, it's totally worth learning to make your own wicks, and make them well. Trust me on this! I would not buy anyone else's wicks to use in my RBA. It's not that hard to make a wick. My own first effort was a pretty sorry affair, but I did learn and now I make wicks just to pass the time and for fun.

RBA's are about being in control of your vape via how well you build them and buying what someone else did will not help one bit. If you want it done right you will have to do it yourself. Wicks from Fastech are not the way to go. You will feel very good about your own wick and coil giving your great vapes when you get there, but you really do need to do it yourself.

 

[tj99959]

Rebuilding wicks & coils has about as steep a learning curve as there is because there are so many right ways to do it.

I would point out that 99% of the time a burnt taste is due to insufficient air flow with a well wrapped coil. Somehow China got the idea that we can get enough air through a pin hole in the side of an RBA/RDA. (the lower the resistance - the larger the air hole needs to be)

The only wick material I use anymore is called "Ekowool". It's a hollow woven silica string/cord, and it comes in several different diameters.
There are so many different ways to wrap a coil anymore that saying which wire gage is best is somewhat redundant. You can only try different ways to see which you like best.

 

[Vaslovik]

Rebuilding wicks & coils has about as steep a learning curve as there is because there are so many right ways to do it.

Boy howdy, ain't that the truth! People get headaches starting out from the dizzying array of right ways to do it. I had people telling me to use SS rope, silica, porous ceramic, U wicks, dual coils, silica inside SS wicks, etc, etc, etc.

I just went with what I saw as the most common, simple, and traditional way to do it, and what PBusardo showed me, SS wick, kanthal coil, and that's been good.

I would point out that 99% of the time a burnt taste is due to insufficient air flow with a well wrapped coil. Somehow China got the idea that we can get enough air through a pin hole in the side of an RBA/RDA. (the lower the resistance - the larger the air hole needs to be)

I never got a burnt taste myself with my RSST for that reason, but I sure did enlarge that air hole. There was just not enough of a draw with it the way it came. I'm pretty sure everyone bores out that air hole some.

 

[dice57]

Check out the micro coil build thread and the nano Dragon build thread. Micro coils are probably the easiest build to master. As long as you have something to wrap it around and cotton to wick it with, you'll get great vape. Having an ohm meter is needed too.

I've done many builds in a short time, Even played with genesis with decent results. I also enjoy a SS mesh cotton core hybrid build. Hot spots are mainly avoided with the micro style build, since you are wrapping tight close touching coils around a 1/16" mold, or smaller. They heat up quickly and produce excellent vape. And can be adapted to most any rba.

But if you get really frustrated and find that rba's is not your thing, I want first dib's on the fogger, think it would be perfect for a SS mesh or SS mesh hybrid build and would add to my collection nicely. I'm going to get one at some point, so would be glad to help you out of your frustration. lol

Every rba that I have seen that comes with a pre-built cols, the build is a joke. Yank it out, save the silica possibly, and build your own. Practice makes progress for great vape.

Still want the fogger though. Good luck.

 

[Vaslovik]

Every rba that I have seen that comes with a pre-built cols, the build is a joke. Yank it out, save the silica possibly, and build your own. Practice makes progress for great vape.

Yup, what he said

 

[DavidCheok]

Burnt taste = insufficient juice flow. There is not enough juices to vapourise and carry away heat so the coils start burning any gunk you may have on them or on the wick. Try tilting the mod to almost horizontal if its a mesh or ss wire wick.

As many here said.. google is your friend. So is experimenting with various wick designs for drip tanks etc. The fun is in the learning.

 

[Shopan]

Practice Makes Prefect for this....there is No right way to Build and you will get Many Bits of advice...For me Using the threads of a screw helped get Even Coils right...I Personally think that xc-116 is the Bees Knees for Wick RBA Supplies LLC Get a sample and try it on that FT atty..

CASAA - The Consumer Advocates for Smoke-free Alternatives Association

 

[joejoe]

Thanks for all the great replies thus far. I intend to practice. Perhaps practicing with the prebuilt coils and wicks wasn't a great idea. But I would like to find one go to wick and coil set up for all my RBAs. I had somebody send me a prebuilt wick and coil with mesh that worked great, but would like to know which type of mesh and coil would work best with these RBAs and where to buy them.

DavidCheok: My burnt taste was coming from hot spots rather than insufficient juice flow. Despite playing with my wicks and coils, I couldn't shake the hot spots and popped all my coils.

Shopan: Thanks for the suggestion, I'll check it out.

Ryedan: All my batteries are IMR and I'm using a Intellicharger.

Vaslovik: Thanks for the suggestion. If SS wick and kanthal coil seem to be the most common set up, I'll give that a shot. Any suggestions as to where to buy the SS wicks and Kanthal coils? Perhaps you're right about the hot spots being due to a fully charged battery. My wraps were between 0.7 - 1ohms.

I just want to say that my frustration isn't with the building of these coils and wicks, since I know the wicks and coils that come with the RBAs are junk. My frustration is with the selection of wicks and coils out there and where to buy them? I don't mind tinkering, but the selection of wicks and coils is overwhelming to me.

Thanks again for all your suggestions and advice!

 

[Vaslovik]

Vaslovik: Thanks for the suggestion. If SS wick and kanthal coil seem to be the most common set up, I'll give that a shot. Any suggestions as to where to buy the SS wicks and Kanthal coils?

Uhhh.... don't buy them, MAKE THEM.

Let me stress again, RBA's are about doing it yourself, and in doing it yourself having control over your vape by doing it well. It's a learning curve yes, but well worth it. Sorry, but this is just not something you can throw money at, and pay someone else to do to have it fixed for you.

If your are going to use RBA's and get anything good out of them you will have to learn how to build them right... YOURSELF.

There is a good deal of personal satisfaction that comes from that, and I hope you find that out.

 

[joejoe]

You have to buy them to make them, don't you?

 

[williebb123]

maybe you should just try standard coils instead of sub ohm coils its like dissecting a frog b4 doing brain surgery

 

[williebb123]

super hot coils give you less time to fiddle with where standard coils are alot more forgiving till you learn what your doing

 

[Vaslovik]

You have to buy them to make them, don't you?

Well, watch that video I posted the link for. It's a real good place to start, and you will figure it out from there. I could type a long instruction post about it, but the video says it better.

No, you don't have to buy them to make them, you have to buy the things you need to make them. Those would be SS mesh and kanthal wire. A good place to start with those is 400# mesh and 28 ga. kanthal. At least those are what works so very well for me. I'm sure others have different takes on this, and some will campaign to get you into drippers quite zealously, but if you are going to use an RBA just concentrate on that for now. I'd suggest sticking with the RSST as it's the easiest to set up.

A well made SS wick will serve you for a good long time, a couple months if well made. Most of all, do not let failures discourage you! Learn from them and truck on. Have patience and persistence and something else to vape on while learning. Once you get YOUR OWN WICK AND COIL working right the comparison will be a big experience.

I just want to say that my frustration isn't with the building of these coils and wicks, since I know the wicks and coils that come with the RBAs are junk. My frustration is with the selection of wicks and coils out there and where to buy them? I don't mind tinkering, but the selection of wicks and coils is overwhelming to me.

Yeah... that's why its really best to make your very own wicks and coils, and it's really what RBA's are about. Trust me on this guy, when you do your own and they work it's a really great feeling, and you are free of people trying to just sell you stuff.

Don't you want that?

 

[Thrasher]

temco industrial supply for wire, for mechanical i use either 28 or 30, for vv i use 32

lightning vapes for silica/soft wick and I think they carry SS mesh now, 500 will do

you need to head to the RBA subforum as the rsst and fogger have been talked about in very long posts.
once you set the RSST up and get that down the atty will be almost the same

 

[matcas]

I have a Fogger, RSST and an ATTY from fasttech however I don't use any of them because I have no idea what kind of wicks or coils to use with them. I've tried using the wicks and wires that come with these RBAs, but I always got a burnt taste, constant hot spots and managed to pop every single coil no matter how I wrapped them. I would love to know which wicks and coils you all prefer and where to buy them. I've become so frustrated and desperate I'm considering buying these: https://www.fasttech.com/products/1475303 but I noticed they only come in 1.8 ohm (worse yet the reviews state these pre-assembled wicks and wires arrive at 2.4 ohm and you can't lower the resistance due to the non-resistance legs).

I use Efest and AW batteries. My juices are mostly 80/20 vg/pg. I will be using these RBAs with a Sigeli #8w, Nimbus clone and a Chi-you clone.

I appreciate your suggestions. Thanks in advance.

Don't get those wicks I got them for when im totally lazy they taste terrible don't know if it's the wick or wire, on the upside it got me to build my own better.

 

[Vaslovik]

Don't get those wicks I got them for when im totally lazy they taste terrible don't know if it's the wick or wire, on the upside it got me to build my own better.

Yup, what he said again... don't be lazy and just throw money at it. Do it yourself and enjoy the fruits of your own labors. Patience and persistence will pay off, I guarantee it.

 

[Ryedan]

lightning vapes for silica/soft wick and I think they carry SS mesh now, 500 will do

Not bad prices and they have the ohm checker in stock